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With a population of 55,000, Casa Grande, Arizona, is a town halfway between Phoenix and Tucson. Home to local attractions like the Dave White Municipal Golf Course, Palm Island Family Aquatic Park, and the Picacho Peak State Park, the town sees its fair share of visitors. 

Some of these visitors may not be familiar with how Casa Grande enforces Arizona’s driving under the influence (DUI) laws. This can lead to equally unplanned and unwelcome experiences with the Casa Grande Municipal Court. 

If you have been charged with DUI in Casa Grande, the Rosenstein Law Group can help you. Our Casa Grande DUI lawyers include certified Arizona DUI specialists who are highly experienced in all aspects of pre-trial plea negotiations and DUI trial defense. 

Call our law office today at 480-248-7666 for a free DUI consultation to learn how our criminal defense attorneys can help you defend yourself against DUI charges.

What is an Arizona DUI Offense?

You can find Arizona’s DUI law in statute ARS 28-1381. This statute defines DUI in three ways:

• Driving or being in “actual physical control” of a motor vehicle while being under the influence of any type of intoxicating liquor, drug, or vapor-based toxic substance
• Driving or being in “actual physical control” of a vehicle with a BAC greater than .08%
• Driving or being in “actual physical control” of a vehicle with any impairing drug and/or its metabolite in your system.

What Does it Mean to Be Under the Influence of Alcohol or Drugs?

When you are pulled over or questioned by the Casa Grande police, the officer will try to get you to agree to give a breath or blood sample to measure your blood alcohol concentration (BAC). If you provide such a sample and it returns a BAC level of 0.08 percent or more, you will be presumed to be impaired by alcohol. 

If a non-alcoholic drug is affecting your driving, its presence in your system qualifies as being under the influence, including medications a licensed physician has prescribed to you. 

Special BAC Concentrations that Can Lead to a DUI Charge in Casa Grande

In some alcohol-related DUI situations, you do not need to have a BAC of 0.08 to be charged with DUI under Arizona law:

• If you are a commercial driver, you are presumed to be under the influence of alcohol with a BAC level as low as 0.04. 
• If you are under the age of 21, then any BAC level carries a presumption of impairment and will result in an underage DUI charge.

What Happens If I Decline to Give a BAC Sample?

By receiving an Arizona driver’s license, you automatically consent to submit to DUI breath, chemical, or blood tests during traffic stops. If you refuse to take a breathalyzer test at the station or processing facility (note that this is not the same as the portable breath testing device often administered on-scene, which you do not have to consent to), or refuse to submit to a blood test when stopped for an alleged DUI in Casa Grande, then you have violated your implied consent.

If this happens, then the Arizona Motor Vehicles Division (MVD) will suspend your driving privileges for one year. This license suspension is separate from any DUI sentence the court might impose if a court convicts you. 

Even if you are not convicted of a DUI, the Arizona MVD suspension of your driver’s license will remain in effect. 

What is an Intoxicating Drug?

In Arizona, many types of drugs, in addition to alcohol, can result in a DUI charge. Some of the better-known intoxicating substances under ARS 13-3401 include: 

• Amphetamines
• Methamphetamine
• Fentanyl
• Phencyclidine (PCP)
• Cannabis (Marijuana)
• Cocaine
• Opium
• Codeine
• Heroin
• Morphine
• Oxycodone
• Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)

You can also be charged with DUI for being under the influence of prescription-only medication if you don’t have a valid prescription or if the drug impairs your driving.

What Does “Actual Physical Control” of a Motor Vehicle Mean?

In Casa Grande, a police officer can arrest you for DUI even when your car is parked with the motor off. 

Arizona’s DUI laws do not define what actual “physical control” means, but Arizona courts have have identified examples: 

• Whether the vehicle’s engine was running or off
• Where the vehicle’s key was located
• If the vehicle’s engine was running for climate control only
• If the parking brake was on
• If the vehicle was in neutral or park
• If the vehicle’s headlights were on or off
• Where the car was parked
• The individual’s position inside the vehicle
• The individual’s reason for being inside the vehicle
• What the individual was doing in the car at the time the police arrived
• The time of day and weather conditions
• Whether the driver voluntarily pulled off the road

What Kinds of DUIs Does the Casa Grande Municipal Court Hear?

Under Arizona law, the following are misdemeanor-level DUI charges:

Types of DUI Charges Based on BAC Levels

DUI Type	Description
Standard DUI	Applies to a BAC of 0.01 to 0.149 or under the influence of an intoxicating substance
Extreme DUI	Applies to a BAC between 0.15 and 0.199
Super Extreme DUI	Applies if your BAC level is more than 0.199
Underage DUI	Applies to any BAC reading greater than 0.00 for individuals under 21 years old

The type of DUI conviction the court imposes on you will decide what penalties the prosecutor can seek against you.

Felony DUI Charges from an Casa Grande DUI Arrest

Aggravated DUIs in Casa Grande are felony-level crimes and are a criminal traffic matter.

An aggravated DUI can include:

• Driving while impaired while your license is suspended or revoked
• Driving while impaired with a child under the age of 15 in the car
• It’s a third DUI offense within 84-months
• You have an ignition interlock device requirement (from a previous DUI conviction), and you are found in actual physical control of a motor vehicle while impaired and the vehicle you are operating is not equipped with an ignition interlock device
• Driving the wrong way on a roadway while impaired

What are the Penalties for a DUI Conviction in Casa Grande?

If you are convicted of DUI in Casa Grande, the penalties for even a first-time conviction can be severe. You could face jail time, fines, license suspension, ignition interlock installation, community service, and probation.

The type of DUI conviction the court imposes on you will decide what penalties the prosecutor can seek against you.

• A standard DUI can result in a minimum of 10 days in jail (9 of which can be suspended upon successful completion of drug and/or alcohol treatment), more than $1,500 in fees and surcharges, a driver’s license suspension, and mandatory ignition interlock device installation. At a minimum, you will spend one day in jail. For a second or third offense, jail time ranges from a minimum of 30 days to a maximum of six months. The base fine also increases.
• An extreme or super extreme DUI is a more severe misdemeanor charge that carries a mandatory jail sentence in addition to the above-mentioned penalties. The minimum jail sentence is 30 days for an extreme and 45 for a super extreme plus fines, fees and surcharges of at least $3,500. You will also be required to attend drug and/or alcohol screening and education.
• The consequences of an aggravated DUI conviction in Maricopa County Superior Court can result in prison time, substantial fines, the loss of your driving privileges, and probation. This crime may be charged as a Class 4 or a Class 6 felony depending on the circumstances. You can also be sent to an Arizona prison for up to 3.75 years.

Many DUI cases in Casa Grande result in plea deals to lesser charges. Hiring an attorney who is prepared to fight for you and your best chances is crucial.

Hire a Board-Certified DUI Defense Lawyer 

A DUI prosecution is not just any criminal matter. It takes a criminal defense law firm that specializes in Arizona DUIs to give you the best legal advice, negotiating leverage, and defense in court. This is where having a board-certified DUI defense attorney is important.

To become an Arizona Board-Certified DUI defense attorney through the National College for DUI Defense, lawyers must be trained to identify weaknesses in police evidence-gathering techniques to create reasonable doubt. This organization is the only accredited body in the U.S. authorized to award this certification.

Only four attorneys in Arizona are board-certified to represent clients as legal counsel in DUI cases. Our founding partner at the Rosenstein Law Group, Craig J. Rosenstein, is one of them as is our Managing Attorney, Jonathan Goebel.

Our experienced defense attorneys ensure that our clients benefit from the following important DUI defense experience:

• Insight and skills of a legal team with decades of experience handling Arizona DUI cases
• Representation for all types of DUI charges, including misdemeanor, extreme DUI, super extreme DUI, and aggravated DUI charges
• Personalized attention and individualized defense strategies based on your unique case facts

How We Defend You Against DUI Charges 

The consequences of an Arizona DUI conviction can haunt you long after you complete your sentence. Even a misdemeanor DUI conviction can have significant long-term effects on your future.

An experienced Casa Grande DUI lawyer can protect you from these long-term consequences.

If you have been arrested in Casa Grande for a DUI offense, a Rosenstein Law Group attorney can help you get through the detainment process and accompany you to law enforcement interrogations and interviews. 

Your attorney will also help you avoid incriminating yourself and seek ways to submit a request for dismissal of charges against you.

Even if your charges cannot be dismissed, your Rosenstein Law Group DUI defense lawyer will still prepare the strongest defense for you. Our law firm has the resources to hire expert witness professionals to strengthen your defense and to counter the testimony of any expert witnesses the DUI prosecutor calls on.

Common Arizona DUI Defenses

A strong defense by an experienced attorney can prevent a conviction or lower the penalties of DUI charges in Anthem. Possible defenses to a DUI charge that our DUI defense lawyers can employ on your behalf can include:

• You were not impaired
• You were not in actual physical control of the vehicle
• Unreliable or inaccurate drug or alcohol testing by the police
• The prosecution lacks enough evidence to convict you
• The prosecution has mishandled the evidence against you
• The police traffic stop or arrest was unlawful
• The police violated your constitutional rights
• You were not read your Miranda rights when subjected to questioning while in custody

What to Do (and Not Do) in a DUI Arrest

Understanding how to react during a DUI stop can be crucial in preventing or reducing the severity of a DUI charge against you.

Use the following tips to protect yourself as much as possible during a DUI arrest:

• Listen to your Miranda rights. The law enforcement officer should read you these rights after your arrest prior to questioning. They include the right to remain silent and the right to consult with an attorney.
• Stay calm and exercise your right to remain silent. Do not answer questions the officer asks about whether you have been drinking. Anything you say to police officers can be used against you.
• Do not agree to take field sobriety tests. While submitting is required, they cannot force you to participate, nor does refusing to participate in the field sobriety tests result in any violation of Arizona’s Implied Consent law (which again is what has implications to your driving privileges in Arizona.)
• Do not provide a breath sample in the Portable Breath Testing (PBT) device on the side of the road/while on scene. Submitting to this breath test is NOT required by Arizona’s Implied Consent law. Only failure to provide a breath sample into the Intoxilyzer machine back at the police station or DUI processing facility implicates Arizona’s Implied Consent law.
• If you are placed under arrest, do not resist. This could result in additional charges against you as well as serious physical injuries. You will have the chance to fight the charges later in a court of law.
• Contact an experienced Arizona nationally certified DUI defense attorney as soon as possible. If you are taken to the police station and/or jail, request that you be allowed to use your phone call and contact Rosenstein Law Group immediately at 480-248-7666.

An experienced criminal defense attorney, like the one you will receive from the Rosenstein Law Group, will take immediate steps to defend your legal rights in a DUI matter. Your attorney will help you prepare for an arraignment hearing in Casa Grande Municipal Court and advise you on what plea to submit.

Contact Our Casa Grande DUI Lawyers Today for a Free Consultation

If you or someone you know has been arrested for allegedly driving under the influence in Casa Grande, Arizona, contact the Rosenstein Law Group law office as soon as possible. Our Casa Grande drunk driving attorneys can take over your case and make an aggressive DUI defense of your rights from the very beginning to improve your odds of success.

Call 480-248-7666 or contact us online for a free case evaluation with a Casa Grande DUI lawyer today.